Hand truck



July 4, 1950 cs. w. BURG 2,514,308

HANDTRUCK Filed March 18, 1946 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 152716721 02 6 eogge W B 215 G. W. BURG HANDTRUCK July 4, 1950 24 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed March 18, 1946 Invezfior Geor e W 2,15 2? fifiorz ey Patented July 4, 1950 UNITED STATES PAT Eur or F1 on 2,514,308

HAND TRUCK- George W. Burg, Portland, Oreg.

' Application March l8, 194G; Serial-No:655,-230-- 5 Claii'ns. 1.

My invention-- relates to astock pick-up and carrier-truck specifically adapted for handling elongated sections or material, such for example, as tubes or pipes, sheets ofplate, sheets of'plywood and also is adapted to carry relatively narrow; heavy packages, such for example, as-boxes.

It is common practice to transport said articles in packages orbundles-and a truck of this charactr must be capable of picking up a relatively heavy-bundle orpacka'gefrom the floor and arrangingit automatically to "balance itself 'upon the truck so that said truck will "not tend to overturn. This should be accomplished independent of the dimensions ofthezpackage: or the weight thereof within limits .2 i

Aprincipal obj ectof mycinvention is to improve that type of stock: pick-up-andxcarrier truck described -in-my co-pendingapplication for patent, entitled Stock Pick-up: and -Carrier Truck, which was filed in the-Unitedrstates Patent Office January 30, 1945,. and which bears Serial No. 575,212 and hasesinceissued .as Patent No. 2,466,149, dated April fi, 1949.;

The istocklpick -up and; carrier truck described in said co-pending application forpatent is capable of picking up i and" transporting bulky packagessuch for example, was sheets of plywood, metal, boards, .andthe::like when they, are arranged on edge andto arrangethezweight thereof so thatoneimanzmayppush the truck over a floor and to discharge-it without requiring additional help; It hasea disadvantage, however, in that it does not lendiitself; to picking up and transporting heavy, bulky-packages nor to carry bundles of vpipe, tubing;.=and:the-1ike with as great facility and with the ease that it does-in transportingvsh'eets of material for which it is specifically adapted.

I attain thisprincipal object of my'invention by provi'dingla.truckhavinga: base'and-vertically es:- tendin'g load supporting members: with 'two I or more obliquely: disposed-members--bearing upon the vertical members: and leading: from thegf-orward edge of the. base to theFtop thereon and shaped :so that they will "carry; narrow,--. short packages with .as'great facility as --lar ger,- more bulky and less 'massive'sheets.- Th-is-isaccomplishedl'in myfpresent invention by ior ming said obliquely disposed members with a lower portion which, although oblique and asubstantiakvertical component; does mot-extend-at-xas sharps-a vertical "angle 'as does the upper --portion thereof An intermediate :section of said-iobliqne-members is arranged vertical and in abutment-with-.the

vertical. members extending from "the: trailing e eof the basea- When/formed inithiamann'er, the loadsupporting memberswill :support narrow; bulkyipackages on said lower end with the centerof mass -thereof arranged intermediate the castersp' so as: to resist overturning. e .They alsowill support longer, more'lelongatedlpackages upon load engaging hooks, 4 said. elongated packagesresting against the .uppentrnoreiverticallyrinclinedmembers. -Said-truck, because of the arrangement of "said load supporting members, may supper-t a pair of l .workeengaging l hooks intermediate the ends -otsaidr oblique load; supporting membersandimmediately below thervertical inter-mediate section; The load supporting-membersaformavirtualpockets for accommodating a load-supportedaby said hooks withthe loadl carried thereby rarranged substantially" at the longitudinal center linelof .thebase, thus, .being substantially:equallyesupported by: the four casters which support saidbase. I

A further object of my invention is tolarrange said load supportingmembers and said hook, last described,.tsoithat:the latter.- may be easily. and quickly engaged therewith to support a load .or to-be swung out-of operating position so that said truck ishadapted to accommodate other and different ='loads carried.rby said truck.

A further and;more:specific object of my invention. is-.to provide :a truck or this character, having-:aplurality; of load-engaging elements which maybe movedselectivelyointo and out of operating=positionto position a load of selected mass and-dimensions; centrally; upon said truck so that it=is-lateral1y stableso as not to tend to 'over- ;turn said truck when the later is moved about a floors 7 o v The detailsmf myinvention and the mode of operation thereof are hereinafter describedwith reference tothe accompanying drawings,- in

--which:

position to engage a-load' intermediate the ends of the oblique load supporting member. and. the

load engaging hookat the right-hand side is adapted to engage a relatively wide package and other -'1oad engaging devices are reversely arranged; 'it is to be understood that therelarepairs of load engaging members at each end of said device and likepairs are moved into. position and rother-loadlengagingi members are swung into inoperative':position with respect thereto;

Fig-.v--2= is aside elevation of the truckembodying m-yinventionwith-a load engagingelement 'types of loads.

amigos 3 shown swung into operating position to support a relatively massive compact bundle lying below the intermediate vertical section of the oblique members;

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2 except that load engaging members .are arranged intermediate the ends of the oblique load supporting member, such for supporting sections of pipe or tubing, immediately below the vertical portion of an oblique load supporting member{ Fig. 4 is a view similar to the two foregoing views with the load supporting members arporting member; and

themselves to narrow, compact heavy loads, wider lighter loads, or, lengths of stock, such for example, as tube or pipe, which are unwieldy because of their flexibility and length. It is essential that the center of mass of any given load lie at a point between the casters so that the truck will not be overturned by said load. Thus, although the general plane of said oblique load supporting members 5 extends obliquely across the base I, the lower portion 511 is inclined at a lesser vertical angle than the upper portion 50.

Joining said oblique portions 5b and 5c in each ranged to accommodate a relatively wide bundle extending the full height of the oblique load sup- Fig. 5 is a sectional view taken on the line 5 -5 in Fig. 4, illustrating the construction of a loadsupporting arm and its bracket.

A hand truck embodying my invention comprises a base I preferably comprising a longimember 5 is a vertical portion 5d in each of the members 5. Thus, if a heavy compact load 9, as shown in Fig. 2, is to be handled by said truck, it will lie wholly within that portion of the bliqueload supporting member below the vertical portion d, and the center of mass will lie subtudinal member la. extending the full width of the truck and two laterally extending members lb joined to the longitudinal member and projecting rearwardly therefrom. That is, said base preferably is open in the back considering the v steady said hand truck but also to place his foot immediately adjacent the longitudinal member la when a load is being lifted by the downwardly projecting nose pieces 3, secured to the frame immediately under the longitudinal member 1a,, Said members la and lb are joined together by diagonal bracing members la. The casters 2 are supported by pads l. Said casters usually are four in number and are arranged at the ends of the lateral members lb and the point of juncture of said lateral members with the longitudinal members.

A plurality of obliquely disposed load supporting members 5 are secured to the longitudinal member la of the base defining the other side of the base and extend upwardly to a point overlying the trailing extremities of the laterally extending members |b.' Vertical members 5 are secured to said rearward or trailing ends of said lateral extendin members lb and are secured at their upper ends to the oblique load supporting members 5 at a point intermediate the ends of said members 5. Thus, said members 5 extend over the top of said vertical members, as is shown in the several views of the drawings. The upper ends of said oblique load Supporting members preferably are joined by a longitudinal load supporting member I. The several load supporting members and the frame are preferably joined together by welding so as to'produce a strong and rigid frame. Said base and load supporting members preferably are made of tubular stock so as to attain substantial rigidity and strength without substantial weight. If a hand truck of substantial width is provided, I provide three of said oblique supportin members 5, the two end ones being joined to the vertical members and the central one 5a having a handle or grip 8 formed thereon. Said handle or grip may be used by the operator in pushing said truck along or in directing its course.

One of the more important features of my present invention is to form said oblique load supporting members so as to accommodate different That is, said oblique load supporting members are adapted to accommodate casters supporting said base. To accommodate such load, I provide a pair of pivotally mounted load supporting hooks Ill, pivotally joined to the base by bolts or studs H and having a forward upwardly inclined nose [2 which when said hooks l8 are arranged as viewed in Fig. 2 extends substantially normal to the plane of the lower portion 5b of the members 5. When said load supporting hooks are to be swung into out-of-theway position they overlie the diagonal bracing members is and are held in alinement therewith by clips l3 secured to said bracing members 10, as is viewed in Fig. 1.

If a relatively light elongated load is to be carried, such as one comprising pipes or tubes l4, said load may be supported by cradle-like load supporting arms l5, each carried by a bracket l6. Said brackets have curved ends I611, adapted partially to encircle and grip the members 5 and B at a point slightly below the vertical portions 5d of the members 5, as is illustrated in Fig. 3. Said curved ends are divergent to engage and position said brackets securely. The upper end So of each vertical member 6 is in abutment with the vertical portion 5d, of a member 5 and said parts perferably are welded together so as to produce a solid, rigid structure at this point. Said vertical members thus support any load which tends to rock the oblique members 5 clockwise about the lower end thereof, as said parts are arranged in Figs. 2, 3 and 4. Such arrangement also causes said parts to be joined securely to provide a rigid structure for supporting a load when it is carried by the brackets and cradle-like load supporting arms l5, as is illustrated in Fig. 3.

When the load supporting arms and brackets are to be moved into inoperative position, this may be accomplished by arranging said parts in the manner shown in the right-hand portion of the frame in Fig. 1 and as is illustrated in Fig. 4. One of said curved ends engages a vertical member 6 and the points of the cradle-like supporting arms are arranged in cups I'l arranged, respectively, adjacent the points of juncture of the base members la and lb. In this position, they are firmly supported and are not subject to become lost by vibration or rough handling.

When a load, such as is illustrated in Fig. 4 and designated as I8, is to be handled which is substantially as wide as the height of the oblique members 5, this may be accommodated by supporting said load upon the nose pieces 3 and permitting the upper end thereof to rest against the upper portions 50 of the oblique load supporting members 5.

"It is possible to lift a load ill by the nose pieces 6 3 or to lift a load 9 by the load supporting hooks I0, although the latter requires the hand truck to be moved so the oblique portions 5 extend substantially vertically or possibly tip forward upon the nose pieces 3 even further than that to engage such a load. Because of the proportions of the parts, however, said load may be lifted in place because of the leverage provided by the load supporting members with respect to the height of the base from the floor or ground level.

My hand truck, thus, is adapted to accommodate itself to any one of a number of different types, sizes and weights of loads and the load engaging members are selectively engageable with a load and may be easily and quickly moved out of disengaging position if other or different load engaging members are to be moved into operating position. It is to be noted that the nose pieces 3 are fastened to the base and are not swung out of operating position. The load engaging hooks I0, however, are adapted to swing so as substantially to overlie them and said hooks extend outwardly beyond the nose pieces 3 so that said nose pieces 3, when the hooks are swung into the position shown in Fig. 2, are effectively out of operating position although they have not been moved.

I claim:

1. A hand truck comprising an elongated horizontally disposed base having two sides, casters supporting said base, a load supporting frame carried by said base and comprising a pair of vertically extending members projecting upwardly from one side of said base, and obliquely extending load supporting members inclined upwardly from the other side of said base across said base and joined to each of said vertical members, said obliquely extending members having their lower portions extending at a lesser vertical angle than that of the upper portions thereof, and a, plurality of load engaging members selectively engaging the several portions of said oblique members for supporting loads of diverse shapes against selected portions of said oblique members.

2. A hand truck comprising an elongated horizontally disposed base having two sides, casters supporting said base, a load supporting frame carried by said base and comprising a pair of vertically extending members projecting upward- 1y from one side of said base, and obliquely extending load supporting members inclined upwardly from the other side of said base across said base and joined to each of said vertical members, said obliquely extending members having their lower portions extending at a lesser vertical angle than that of the upper portions thereof, said portions being joined by an intermediate section extending substantially vertically, and a plurality of load engaging members selectively engaging the several portions of said oblique members for supporting loads of diverse shapes against selected portions of said oblique members.

3. A hand truck comprising an elongated horisaid base and joined to each of said vertical members, said obliquely extending members having their lower portions extending at a lesser vertical angle than that of the upper portions thereof, each of said lower and upper portions of each of said members being joined by an intermediate section extending substantially vertically and lying in abutment with and parallel to a corresponding vertical member, and a plurality of load engaging members selectively engaging the several portions of said oblique members for sup orting loads of diverse shapes against selected portions of said oblique members.

4. A hand truck comprising an elongated horizontally disposed base having two sides, casters supporting said base, a load supporting frame carried by said base and comprising a pair of Vertically extending members projecting upwardly from one side of said base, and obliquely extending load supporting members inclined upwardly from the other side of said base across said base and joined to each of said vertical members, said obliquely extending members having their lower portions extending at a lesser vertical angle than i that of the upper portions thereof, each of said lower and upper portions of each of said members being joined by an intermediate section extending substantially vertically and lying in abutment with and parallel to a corresponding vertical member, a plurality of load engaging members selectively engaging the several portions of said oblique members, one of said load engaging members detachably gripping said oblique and vertical members, the gripping portions being spaced to seat the latter load engaging member a predetermined distance below the vertical intermediate section of said oblique load supporting members.

5. A hand truck comprising an elongated horizontally disposed base having two sides, casters supporting said base, a, load supporting frame carried by said base and comprising a pair of vertically extending members projecting upwardly from one side of said base, and obliquel extending load supporting members inclined upwardly from the other side of said base across said base, being joined to each of said vertical members and extending over the top thereof, said obliquely extending members having their lower portions extending at a lesser vertical angle than that of the upper portions thereof, and a plurality of load engaging members selectively engaging the sevdontally disposed base having two sides, casters supporting said base, a load supporting frame carried by said base and comprising a pair of vertically extending members projecting upwardly from one side of said base, and obliquely extending load supporting members inclinded upwardly from the other side of said base across eral portions of said oblique members for supporting loads of diverse shapes against selected portions of said oblique members.

GEORGE W. BURG.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Tripp et a1. Feb. 6,, 1940 

